This little snippet has just been gnawing away at me for a few days. I had to put it on paper, just to let it go.
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Eight year old Jed Curry lay very still beneath the warmth of the blankets, his legs pulled up, his cheeks wet with incessant silent tears. He wiped the back of his hand across his runny, stuffy nose, then dried his hand on his shirt. He kept his breathing slow and even for fear of waking his cousin, Han who slept in the bed next to his.
When the clock on the wall chimed the midnight hour, Jed leaned back and craned his neck to confirm that Han was still sleeping. Then, with great stealth, Jed drew back the covers, slipped out of the bed, picked up his boots, and tiptoed to the open window.
It had been just three days since the army of soldiers invaded the farms, stealing livestock, money, silver, and brutally killing every person in sight, every person bold enough to defend what was rightfully theirs.
Three days since Jed Curry and Hannibal Heyes had become orphans.
Reverend Castleton and his wife Edna had taken in the two cousins, given them food, shelter, and most importantly comfort, while Sheriff Moreland wired all the orphanages, and Wayward schools in Kansas seeking placement for these two poor waifs as well as more than a dozen other children in a similar situation.
The Valparaiso School for Wayward Boys had wired back almost immediately, willing to accept the two as wards of the state, which guaranteed the school a predetermined annul payment for their room, board, and education.
They were schedule to leave by stage that morninng, accompanied by a deputy, on a two day trip to the southwestern edges of the state where the school was located.
A couple of hours before dawn, Han woke and he immediately looked over at the bed beside him to check on his young cousin. When he saw the bed was empty, Han looked about the room. Not finding his cousin, Han dressed quickly and, like Jed, he carried his boots in his hand as he quietly descended the stairs and slipped out the front door. He sat on the edge of the porch and pulled on his boots.
Han first checked the outhouse, but found it vacant. Next he checked the barn and the loft. Knowing of just one other place Jed was likely to be, Han saddled one of the Reverend's horses, led him out of the barn to mount up, and then raced off toward the remains of what had been the Curry farm.
As he approached, Han saw the silhouetted figure of young Jed sitting cross-legged on a pile of sod that separated the graves of his mother and father. One small hand rested limply on the edge of each grave.
Heyes dismounted and tethered the horse to a tree. Jed heard the horse nicker and he could sense his cousin approaching from behind, but he offered no acknowledgment. Han stood behind Jed, towering over his young cousin. But still, Jed didn't move.
Slowly Han sat down beside Jed, lifting Jed's hand from the grave as he inched himself as close to his cousin as he could. In the light cast from the moon, Han saw Jed's tear smudged cheeks.
"I couldn't leave without telling em why I wouldn't be coming around no more, why I wouldn't be tending their graves, Han," Jed said in a whispered voice that cracked and broke as he spoke.
Han slipped an arm across Jed's shoulders and drew him close, Jed's head resting on Han's chest.
"Don't you know, Jed, now that they're in heaven, they'll be right beside you every minute of every day. They'll be watching over you, just like mine will be watching over me. They'll know every lie you tell. They'll see every apple you snitch from someone's tree. They'll see your every smile and your every tear. They'll hear everything you say to them, and when your heart starts to mend, you'll hear them talking to you, too. The only thing that's changed, Jed, is that they took up residence in your heart and your mind, and one day, you'll feel strong enough to open your heart to them again."
Jed shifted and buried his head in Han's shirt. Jed's body remained very still, but Han could feel spots on his shirt growing damp. With his free hand, Han reached up and stroked the curly locks of tangled blonde hair.
"We'll come back here, Jed. I promise, one day we'll come back, and we'll tend the graves together."
"Han," Jed sobbed as he pushed himself away from his cousin's shirt. "Don't ever leave me, Han. Not ever."
"I won't...Kid. You and me are partners. We always have been. No matter what life brings our way, Kid, you and me will always be partners."